Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-Backed Metro Brands Shares Make Weak Debut, Lists At 13 Per Cent Discount

The stock listed at Rs 436, a decline of 12.8 per cent against the issue price on the BSE, while on the NSE it made its debut at Rs 437, a discount of 12.6 per cent

New Delhi: Shares of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed footwear retailer Metro Brands on Wednesday listed with a discount of nearly 13 per cent from the issue price of Rs 500.

The stock listed at Rs 436, a decline of 12.8 per cent against the issue price on the BSE. It further tumbled 14.78 per cent to Rs 426.10.

On the NSE, it made its debut at Rs 437, a discount of 12.6 per cent.

The company commanded a market value of Rs 12,805.65 crore on the BSE.

The initial public offer (IPO) of Metro Brands was subscribed 3.64 times on the last day of subscription on Tuesday last week. Non-institutional investors bid for 3.02 times the allotted quota, while the retail portion was booked 1.13 times

A day ahead of its listing, the stock was exchanging hands at a discount of Rs 60-70 per share in the grey market, hurt by dampened sentiments on Dalal Street.

Most analysts had assigned a ‘subscribe’ rating to Metro Brands’ IPO given its strong financials and cash flow generation, along with plans for aggressive product portfolio expansion and store addition.

The Rs 1,367.5-crore IPO had a price range for the offer at Rs 485-500 per share. The IPO had a fresh issue of Rs 295 crore and an offer for sale of up to 2,14,50,100 equity shares.

Currently, the company has 598 stores in 136 cities spread across the country.

Metro retails its footwear under its own brands Metro, Mochi, Walkway, Da Vinchi, and J Fontini, as well as certain third-party brands such as Crocs, Skechers, Clarks, Florsheim, and Fitflop, which complement the in-house brands.